The Atlanta hip-hop scene has been as active as ever lately, turning out exciting up-and-comers who often blend in well with the established stars from the area. The latest name to emerge may just be Loso Loaded, who made some noise in 2016 and has already collaborated with some pretty big names from his hometown. His debut mixtape “Bomb First” was initially expected out in March of this year and seems to have been delayed. Even so, we still expect to hear from Loso before the end of 2017.
In a rap scene as busy as the one that exists in Atlanta, an artist like Loso Loaded can do well to make connections with some of the people who are already being listened to, and that’s just what the artist focused on last year. He worked with the likes of Lil Yachty and 21 Savage as he started to promote his music, and a few tracks that are expected to make it onto the mixtape gained a little bit of notoriety. “Loso Boat,” featuring Lil Yachty, has over 700,000 views on YouTube, and “Extortion” with 21 Savage has already surpassed a million. That’s a lot of attention for an artist who really hasn’t made it on his own yet, and naturally the test will be to see if “Bomb First” can hit with just the name Loso Loaded on the cover.
Loso has a lot of motivation on his side. In an extensive interview presented by XXL, he discussed his background coming from Atlanta’s “Ninth Ward” neighborhood. Loso presents his choices as either living a life on the streets or making something of himself, and expresses that he chose the latter by making music his “girlfriend.” He claims to have started making music around age 13, giving him a decade of experience as he works toward his first mixtape with Bases Loaded Records at age 23. That’s the kind of motivation that will earn him respect not just in Atlanta but in the greater hip-hop industry—if the music is good.
If his story is seems familiar, Loso is taking a more original approach with his lyrics. There are themes from his story, but he’s also making broader pop culture plays that will stand out to people who don’t already know him. The clearest example is when he compares his journey to succeed to those of Matt Ryan and Tom Brady. For those who don’t follow sports closely, these are the two NFL quarterbacks who faced off in last year’s Super Bowl, and Ryan as the league MVP out of Atlanta. It’s a clever little lyric that works in the context of the song but is also meant to grab people’s attention and make them listen.
Right now, Loso is in limbo, as there’s not much concrete information out there about when the mixtape will actually come out. But as one article looking at artists to watch in 2017 put it, he could be looking at a breakout year if the mixtape pops off like it has the potential to. Keep an eye out for “Bomb First” and decide for yourself once it’s finally released.
